It's in the Energon
by Metal-Gear-Eva
Summary: G1.Chap 5, Bluestreak's back online, but why is Ratchet not happy? Set on Cybertron before the Ark crashes on Earth. A disturbance occurs in Iacon, but seems to have nothing to do with the Decepticons. The Autobots are determined to get to the bottom of i
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Unfortunately I do not own the Transformers. They belong to those lucky folks at Hasbro.

Summary: This story is set on Cybertron before the Ark left and crashed on Earth. An incident occurs in downtown Iacon which isn't the work of the Decepticons... This chapter starts off pretty slow, but I promise it gets more interesting.

**IACON CITY: 21:31**

Alive with a constant hum of energy and neon lights, Iacon was a city that seemed like a perpetually comforting and safe place to be. Perhaps the main reason Iacon seemed like this was because of whose control it was under - or rather: whose control it wasn't under. Iacon was the Autobots' capital city on Cybertron. For that reason, Jazz was passing through some of its quieter, darker parts without so much a second thought to his safety. His logic circuits never made him think otherwise. Any 'bot that knew Jazz (and most did) knew he was pretty laid back and easy going for the most part, except for when it came to duty. When it came to duty, Optimus would tell you straight that Jazz was one of his most reliable soldiers, truly dedicated to the Autobot cause. Optimus Prime never lies and is seldom wrong.

Small lights from all around the mech city glinted and reflected off of his almost immaculate black and white body work as he strode through the dark alleyways and back streets of Iacon, humming to himself. Jazz knew all the quicker routes back to Autobot HQ and moved through the city with ease. Suddenly his wrist communicator emitted a single beep, the sound loud against the background silence.

"Magnus to Jazz, over."

Jazz stopped and flipped open his wrist communicator. An image of the security commander appeared on the small screen. "This is Jazz, over."

"Jazz, we're calling in all operations for tonight, I need everyone back at HQ for a meeting."

"No probs sir, was just on my way back there," Jazz grinned.

"Think you can get back within 3 breems?"

"Heh, easy, probably more like 2-- huhh?!-"

Jazz's face swung out of view of the screen that Magnus had been using to communicate with him. The visual cut off almost immediately after, to be replaced with static.

"Transmission terminated in untimely manner. Visual and audio communication are currently offline," Teletraan droned.

"Frag," Magnus cursed. "What happened?" he asked, frowning at the screen, before turning to Ironhide and Prowl who had also witnessed the incident. Ever calm and composed, the big 'bot gave them their orders.

"Prowl, Ironhide, I need you to find Jazz and assist him if necessary."

"On it sir," Prowl answered, getting up quickly from behind his desk.

"Primus, I hope he's alright, I wonder what happened," Ironhide murmured with some concern in his voice.

Magnus was operating Teletraan. "Jazz should be okay, he knows how to take care of himself... and his enemies for the most part. I can't get a position on him at this time, but his last transmission came from the following grid: 176 264. Get that?"

Both answered, "Yes Sir," in unison and made their way out hastily. Magnus didn't have to tell them twice, both of them being experienced soldiers. Ultra Magnus leaned over Teletraan, deep in processing.

"There have been no reports of Decepticon activity in the city for the last week, no information of possible assaults…my logic circuits don't like this…," the hulking commander said out loud, before turning around to face Bluestreak who was sat behind a desk at a computer, looking very much alert.

"I guess the meeting will have to wait."

* * *

Jazz was in the middle of the transmission with Ultra Magnus when he felt a strong, hot hand grab his shoulder and shove him violently to the floor. His wrist communicator smashed upon impact, terminating his transmission with Magnus. 

"Uh! Tha' frag?!" Jazz grimaced and looked up. What he saw made his optics open wide. A hulking robot stood above him, slightly smaller than he was. He was heaving like all his circuits were on fire and his optics blazed a neon green that Jazz had never seen before, blurring in the night with his every movement. He wasn't a Decepticon. No insignia. A quick scan brought up nothing. Who was he and what was his problem?

The mystery robot lunged towards Jazz with surprising speed, but Jazz skilfully rolled out of the way, metal grating as he manoeuvred to place a well-aimed kick to the back of the 'bot's knee, collapsing him to the floor.

"Now who are ya, what d'ya want, man? I take it you haven't come to talk?" Jazz said, looking carefully through his visor.

Before Jazz had even picked himself up off the floor, the robot swung towards him, engine revving, making incoherent, crazed sounds. He slammed Jazz down, smashing his head on the hard ground.

"Uhhhh," Jazz's head twitched side to side and his optics flickered for a few seconds. Then Jazz pulled himself together with a speed brought about by vorns of doing his job. The robot leaned over him, his optics crazed, and curled his fist high above Jazz's head before savagely launching into a crazed punching frenzy.

"You...scrap heap...," Jazz managed. "Think yer stronger than me... FASTER than me?!?"

Metal could be heard grating and pounding from the frenzied punches, Jazz just knew this was murder on his bodywork. He grabbed the robot's shoulders and kicked him back forcefully into a wall, putting all his frustration into the kick.

His attacker thudded hard into the wall back first, falling down before getting straight back up again. He charged towards Jazz, tackling him to the ground. Jazz was gobsmacked, his hits seemed to be having little affect. This 'bot was really something.

"AHHHHHH!!" The 'bot roared.

The beserked robot was further enraged now and shot both his purple arms forward, latching them around Jazz's neck and applying extreme pressure. For a brief moment, Jazz simply stared into the monster's optics through his visor. He was insane. No logic governed his circuits. He was completely out of control and beyond reach or reasoning. Jazz found he had already made his mind up as to his next course of action. He unholstered his photon rifle slowly, setting it to burn. The sounds of circuits being crushed in his neck squeaked and crackled in his audios, the robot's hot hands burning off his paint. The pressure on his neck was beginning to dim his optics, and his audio sensors were beginning to fade on him. The energy in him was being blocked from reaching his cerebro circuitry and he was in danger of offlining if he didn't get this brute off of him fast. Sluggishly, he lifted his right arm up and aimed the photon rifle right at the robot's chassis. His attacker was too blind in his rage to even notice. Jazz pressed his gun against the chassis and pulled the trigger.

"EHHRR!!"

The explosion briefly shorted Jazz's audio and optic sensors at such close range. The burning hulk of the robot flew through the air and crashed hard onto the ground. Black smoke smoldered from the mess, burning from the inside, and sounds of circuits crackling and popping could be heard. Jazz partially sat up, just watching, heaving from what had just occurred.

"What the- Jazz, are you alright?" Prowl came running over to him, Ironhide beside him.

"Never...better," He smiled weakly.

Prowl and Ironhide each grabbed an arm and helped pull Jazz up.

"Primus, what did you get yourself into this time, huh?" Ironhide asked, looking him in the optics.

"And who was that?" Prowl asked pointing to the burning heap of metal with quizzical optics.

"No idea…don't know. All I know is…he was fraggin insane," Jazz heaved."And strong!...He weren't all there…tellin' ya."

"He just attacked you? No reason?" The white Datsun inquired, his customary logical processing taking over.

"No! No reason, man! Just went for me…fraggin' coward as well, whacked me one from behind. That weren't no ordinary 'bot, folks," Jazz worriedly started checking down all the scrapes and scratches to his bodywork.

"Another wrist comm. down the drain, huh, Jazz?" Ironhide smirked. "I don't think we should give you anymore, you just break them."

"Whatever," Jazz grinned lazily.

Prowl cautiously walked over to the wreck to take a better look, the other two following him.

"He wasn't a Decepticon," Prowl determined, saying it more to himself than anyone else.

"So why?" Ironhide questioned in confusion, looking over the burning mess.

"There was something about him…as if he had been taken over by something, he had no control over himself," Jazz started explaining. He re-holstered his rifle. "His optics glowed a neon green I've never seen before, and he was the temperature was way over the critical threshold."

"Well, in all my time, I ain't never heard anything like it," Ironhide frowned, lost in processing.

"We need to try and get a sample of his energon, I want to take it back for testing," Prowl said, already getting out his equipment. He knelt on the floor, looking for any of the liquid. "That's unusual."

"What's up, Prowl?" Jazz asked

"His energon…it's a strange colour. Its not purple, its a faint green," Prowl's optics studied it intently, a frown on his face.

"I say we get back ASAP and let Prime and Magnus know about this straight away," Ironhide said.

"Agreed," Prowl answered, putting the sample away safely sealed and getting up to join his comrades. As the other two began walking, Jazz stood over the burning hulk of all that was left of the psychotic robot. Looking down, he simply shook his head, before walking off to join the others.

* * *

A/N: First of all, I'd just like to say a big thank you to my awesome beta reader, tomorrow4eva, you're a great help to me, I really appreciate it! Also, Optimus wasn't in this chapter for a reason, but he's in the next one. I'm currently working on the 2nd chapter, should be done kinda soonish, hope to see you then! Also, reviews are always extremely appreciated, please review if you can spare the time! 


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: 'Transformers' does not belong to me. It belongs to ye olde Hasbro.

Summary: Chapter 2 is a fair bit longer then chapter 1 was. My mind went into overdrive.

**AUTOBOT HQ: 22:15**

Inside Autobot HQ Ultra Magnus was waiting patiently for the return of three of his best: Prowl, Ironhide and Jazz. Waiting was something Magnus was more than used too, and he had the patience of an automated system. He had waited years sometimes for the right moment to strike to capture notorious criminals. It was always worth it in the end.

Soon enough, they came strolling through the doors of the Operations room. Magnus was visibly relieved to see Jazz completely functional, though he noted someone had done a job on his body work.

"Jazz, I'm glad to see you are okay," Magnus nodded his head.

"Thanks, Sir, wasn't so bad," He grinned

"Your body work says otherwise," Ironhide smirked.

"Your face says otherwise, man!"

"Ahem, okay," Magnus motioned everyone to sit around the meeting table. "Are you ready to give me a report on the incident, please?"

"Yes, Sir," Jazz nodded.

"Okay. Go ahead, Jazz."

"Sir, as you're aware, I was returning back to HQ when I was attacked. This 'bot had insane strength and was just completely out of control. Not the kinda mech you'd like to bump into down a dark alley, except for I did. I couldn't get through to him at all, Sir. I had to result to using my photon rifle on him with fatal force. That thing should only be meant for Decepticon trash," Jazz finished, looking down at the table.

Magnus' logic circuits were sparked. "He wasn't a Decepticon?" the commander asked, crossing his bulky arms with a frown on his face.

"Nope. No insignia, and scans brought up nothing."

"Hmmm, I trust your judgement, Jazz."

"Thanks, Sir"

"Sir", Prowl jumped in, "I have a sample with me that I collected from the scene of the incident. It's an energon sample from the attacker. I think Ratchet should examine it, it's…special," He trailed off, optics intense.

"In what way, Prowl?" Magnus inquired.

"Well, it's green sir."

"How peculiar, I've never heard of green energon," Magnus frowned, taking the sample off of Prowl, and studied it harshly with his optics.

"Smelt different too. Where's Red Alert when you need him?" Ironhide quipped.

"Okay, Prowl, take this down to Ratchet, have him analyse it. He's just about done working on Optimus' arm now. Also, I will need your written report of the incident by tomorrow."

"Of course, Sir," Prowl got up from his seat, saluted, and left for the medical bay immediately.

"Good to hear about Optimus," Ironhide said. "Everything went well then, huh?"

"Yes. Nothing can hold Prime down for long, especially a Decepticon attack. His arm has been reattached with no complications."

"Thank Primus for that," Jazz said, leaning back comfortably in his chair.

"Indeed. Well, you two and Prowl can call it a cycle. Please remember to hand in your written reports by tomorrow. Report for duty tomorrow morning."

"Yes, Sir"

"You did good work. Well done."

The two thanked him before leaving for some well deserved recharging.

* * *

It was early morning, and most of the Autobots were gathered in the operations room for a briefing. Their leader, Optimus Prime, stood at the front of the room in front of Teletraan, Ultra Magnus to his right.

"Autobots," The room quietened when Optimus began. "There was an incident last night…and in the early hours of this morning," Optimus' authoritative voice came across calmly.

Jazz frowned, "This mornin'?"

"Both involved our fellow Autobots being attacked by, as of yet, an unknown enemy. These were not Decepticon attacks."

Small groups of hushed chatter broke out through the room, looks of confusion on the majority of faces, anger on others.

"Prowl, there was another attack? Who man?"

Prowl turned to face Jazz, arms crossed over his broad chest, "I don't know, Jazz. For the love of Primus though, I hope they're okay."

Across the other side of the room, the twins were two of the mechs favouring angered faces.

"The slag? First the Decepticons wanna piece of us, who now?" Sideswipe said fiercely.

"Who cares? We'll just give them some special treatment too. More circuits to fry," Sunstreaker smirked menacingly.

"Autobots," Prime cut in, silence once again filling the room. "These attackers were strong. Whilst the first incident went through without too many problems, the second did not go so well. Bluestreak is, as of now, fighting for his life, I'm sad to say. He has the best doctor working on him in the whole of Cybertron though, so let's not lose hope," Prime tried to add on a positive note.

"All I can tell you about these attackers is that both were found to have unusually coloured energon in their systems. As of yet, we are unaware of the significance of this, but Ratchet will be investigating once time permits. I've organised a small recon team to enter the city and investigate. Please heed the information you have been given and operate about the city with extreme caution and a state of suspicious alertness. That is all for now. Jazz, Hound, Bumblebee, and Sunstreaker, please remain behind."

All of the Autobots, other than those asked to stay behind, filed out of the Operations room in groups, chattering. Ultra Magnus remained at the front of the room with Prime.

"You four are the ones I have chosen for this mission. Jazz, you will be in command. Any questions?" Optimus looked around at each of them.

There were none. Everyone remained still, except for Bumblebee who was bristling with excitement, his circuits practically crackling with an electrical rush at being chosen for the mission.

Suddenly Jazz shot his hand up.

"Prime…Bluestreak. What happened ta' him?" Worry was evident in his voice.

"Yes, Bluestreak. Ultra Magnus will explain," Prime took a seat at the meeting table, everyone else following suit.

The big security commander begun once he was seated. "About two hours after Jazz and the others returned from the first incident and went into recharging, we received reports from locals of a minor disturbance down in the city. Bluestreak, capable of dealing with such situations, volunteered himself to go and investigate. It was, after all, only 'minor'…regardless, I acted very unprofessionally, I should have provided him with back up-"

"Magnus," Prime cut in, "we discussed this. You could not possibly have foreseen the situation ahead," Prime flexed his left shoulder a little.

"My apologies, Prime. It still eats away at my circuitry, however. But the topic at hand…Bluestreak went to downtown Iacon by himself. Not once did I think that this would be in anyway related to the incident involving you, Jazz. It simply seemed like an isolated case to me at the time, but it was wrong of me to make my own assumptions. The aggressor sounded awfully similar to the one you had encountered, from the little information the back up team were told by Bluestreak when they first arrived at the scene. The attacker had fled by then, leaving Bluestreak for deactivation, but an energon sample was recovered from the scene. All the required tests are yet to be done, but my logic circuits cannot find any reason for denying that these cases are related. Thus, we will be sending you four out to further investigate this threat. We need you to gather any information you can. Subtlety and caution will be required. Questions?" Magnus finished, looking around the table with his blue optics.

Bumblebee put his hand up, "Sir, if we encounter one of these threats, do we destroy them or take them prisoner?"

"Prime?" Magnus turned to the commander.

Optimus leaned back in his chair. "Whilst taking one prisoner would be of great value to us, I do not want anyone putting their life in danger to do so. Remember, this is a recon mission. Use lethal force if you must. Look out for each other."

"Right."

"Well," Optimus continued, "going by the information we have, it would be logical to proceed about the mission in the following way: both attacks occurred at night, therefore you will not leave base until later tonight. Secondly, the attacks took place in quiet, back street areas. Why? We need you to find that out, and Primus help us if they end up kicking up in more populated areas. It's unfortunate we have such little information to go by, but it's something. The mission is in your hands now. Good luck, Autobots. If anyone can do it, I know you can. You are dismissed," Optimus finished.

"Yes, Sir," they all acknowledged before getting up from their seats to leave, except for Jazz who remained behind.

"Yes, Jazz?" Optimus looked at him calmly.

Jazz looked behind himself to make sure Sunstreaker was out of audio shot before speaking.

"Errr, Sir…," Jazz seemed a little confused, one hand on the back of his neck, "I was just wonderin'…why has Sunstreaker been assigned to this mission? I mean, he's hardly known for his subtlety and patience. I'm not puttin' him down or anything, just he's…," Jazz paused, tilting his head, "…not really recon material."

"Back up," Optimus replied simply. "You may require his strength if you run into any more trouble."

"Ahh right, cool. I understand," Jazz nodded his head. "Well, that was all. I better start preparing for the mission," He got up and saluted before turning to leave. Before he went through the door, Optimus spoke, "Jazz, just one thing."

"What's up, Sir?" Jazz spun around.

"Please keep an optic on Bumblebee tonight. I know he's excited about the mission, but he's still learning and I don't want him acting out of his capacity."

"No problem, Prime, I'll look out for the lil' yella' fella," Jazz smiled.

"Thanks, Jazz. Have a good one."

"Oh, I'm sure we will," Jazz grinned and left.

* * *

"How's he doing, Ratchet?" Optimus asked quietly, deep concern in his voice. The tall leader stood beside the operating table Bluestreak lay on. Bluestreak was completely still, his optics dark.

Ratchet was rifling through some draws close by, looking for something.

"Well, he's still in stasis lock as of now, Prime, brought on by critical system trauma," Ratchet answered matter-of-factly. Optimus admired the way Ratchet kept his calm. It was a good trait for a medic – good at keeping others from exessive worrying. Primus knew, Ratchet did enough of that himself.

"Hmmmm...," Optimus sighed, looking down at the too-still Bluestreak.

Ratchet closed the draws he'd been searching through, walked over and leaned on the operating table.

"I'm doing the best I can, Prime. Don't give up on him yet."

"I don't doubt you for a second, Ratchet. I'd never give up on one of my Autobots," Optimus' optics seemed to dim a little.

"I'm gonna work on getting all his internal systems recovered and operating again, then he'll be out of stasis lock."

"I understand, Ratchet."

The doors to the med bay slid open and Mirage walk in slowly, unsure as to whether he was disturbing something.

"What can I do for you, Mirage?" Ratchet asked, beginning to move equipment about in the room.

"Oh, nothing, Doc, just came to see how an old friend is doing," He walked over to where Blue lay.

"Well, Ratchet, I'd better be going," Optimus said, walking towards the door. "I'll check up on Blue again soon."

Optimus walked through the door and was gone. Ratchet stared at the closed door for a moment before going back to work.

* * *

**Later on**

Optimus strode into the Operations room, and looked around. He walked over to Magnus who was hunched in a corner with some data pads. Optimus simply stood beside him and looked at the data pads for a moment, raising an eyebrow ridge with a slightly amused look on his face. "Magnus, you can't report yourself."

"There's no protocol that says otherwise, Prime. Besides, it's only right that I should do so, my conduct was in error," Magnus said, still fiddling about with various data pads.

"Magnus…we all make mistakes, some are punishable by protocol, but yours isn't. Please let this go."

"Sorry Prime, I can't. I can't allow myself special treatment."

Optimus simply pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head.

* * *

**DOWNTOWN IACON: 21:04**

"Bumblebee in position, over," Bee sent over the group comm. link.

"Roger. You got those two in your sights, Bee?" Jazz sent back.

"Ohhhh yeah, I see 'em."

"Hound?"

"Yeah, I see them Jazz, got my optics trained on 'em."

"Sunstreaker?"

"Frag it, yes. Been here for the last vorn already, could have chromed and waxed myself by now."

"Take it that's a no then," Jazz joked.

"..."

Each of the Autobots had closed in around the two suspicious characters they had been tracking for the last 3 breems. Each had a different vantage point of the scene in the dark alley.

"They both look dodgy, I'll give you that, but they're hardly like the other two you described. They're not completely out of it," Sunstreaker sent to Jazz over the link.

"Either way, we have to stick around to see what these 'bots are up to," Jazz replied.

Sunstreaker was staring down at the two mechs from above, perched on the outside ledge of a building, hidden well in shadows that seemed to curl around him. His blue optics glowed strongly in the dark, he was itching to get fighting. Hound was crouched in front of a shattered window in an abandoned, wrecked building across the road from the alley where the two mechs stood. He rubbed his hands together and stared intensely at the figures, ready to make a move if necessary.

Both Bumblebee and Jazz were positioned at opposite ends of the back alley, hidden behind mounds of scrap and debris. Jazz had offlined his olfactory sensors not long after settling there because of the 'funky' smell. Now they all remained as still and silent as deactivated 'bots, simply watching and listening. Little were they aware that someone else was doing exactly the same as they were, looking down on the scene from a position even higher than Sunstreaker's…

The two robots huddled to the side of the alley, looking extremely suspicious, not that they didn't already look extremely suspicious huddled in a deserted, downtown alley.

"Have you done this before?" The bigger of the two asked quietly. Not particularly big by Autobot standards, he stood perhaps 2-3 feet taller than Bumblebee, and was silver in colour. His smaller accomplice was about the same height as Bee, and orange.

"No. No, never," The smaller mech said, shaking his head vigorously.

"Wooo, you're gonna love it, trust me," He pulled out what looked like a needle.

"What the frag?" Sunstreaker sent over the group link.

"How long does is last?" The smaller 'bot asked.

"About 4 and a half breems, maybe 6 if you're lucky. You've never felt anything like it before, it's amazing. You feel like you can take on the entire slaggin' universe. Nothing'll prepare you for the rush through you're circuits."

The smaller mech was nodding his head nervously, watching as the other filled the needle with a bright green liquid from a vial.

"Ready?"

"Yeah, yeah, do it."

"It'll burn a bit at first."

The bigger 'bot leaned forward and carefully stuck the needle into one of the bigger cables in the others neck, injecting the bright liquid steadily. "You owe me, buddy."

"Ahhhhhhhhhh! My cir-CUITSSSS---!" The 'bot glitched slightly, before dropping to his knees on the ground, heaving as the fierce liquid circulated around him.

"In the name of the Matrix?!" Bee sent through the group link.

Hound stared ahead at the scene, his mouth wide open and optics wide. It looked horrifying. Why would someone subject themselves to that? Then, very abruptly, after a minute or two, the mech seemed to change. He pushed himself up off the ground with ease, still heaving lightly, but his entire countenance had changed from before when he had been injected. That's when Jazz noticed it: the glowing neon green optics, the same as on the mech he had tumbled with and destroyed before. Optics wide beneath his visor, Jazz watched as the bigger robot prepared to inject himself.

"Not tonight ya don't, big fella," He said to himself before communicating with the others on the group link,"Guys, we've watched enough of this show, I think I know what happens next, let's join in on the action. Surround them!"

The Autobots moved with speed and surprise, surrounding the two startled mechs in astro seconds. Sunstreaker leapt down from above. Each of the Autobots had their weapons pointed at the suspects.

"Okay, put the needle down on the floor, the vial too, and any weapons you may have. And no funny business!" Jazz ordered.

"Yeah, put 'em on the fraggin' floor you glitches!" Sunstreaker shouted.

"Easy there, Sunny."

Sunstreaker frowned at the nick name, but kept quiet.

The bigger robot acted sensibly and put the needle and vial on the ground in front of him. Apparently, he had no weapons. The other robot remained where he was, not making any moves.

"Bee," Jazz said.

Bee quickly scooted forward, retrieved the needle and vial, then slid back into formation again.

"Hey, shorty, if you got any weapons, you better drop 'em. NOW!" Sunstreaker pointed his electron-pulse gun to the floor for emphasis.

Suddenly, the small robot lashed out, his speed catching Sunstreaker out as he pounced on him. The rest of the Autobots turned their attention towards him, along with their weapons at break neck speed. There was no need however, as Sunstreaker soon flipped the smaller mech onto his back and straddled him, throwing metal-crunching punches into his face repeatedly. During the short time that this had taken to occur, the other robot had turned and fled, seizing his opportunity for escape.

"Hound, after him!" Jazz shouted, noticing the 'bot running out of view of the alley. Hound transformed and sped after the escapee.

Sunstreaker was still throwing powerful punches into the face of the injected mech, who seemed to have gone limp. Bumblebee stared at Sunstreaker's face as he did this. Sunstreaker's extremely composed, cold face sent shivers through him. Bee could never get over how ruthless, and at times, psychotic, Sunstreaker seemed in battle.

Jazz's voice brought him back into focus. "I think that's enough, Sunstreaker. Let's cuff him."

Sunstreaker threw a few more punches before stopping and turning to face Jazz with a grin on his face, energon splattered on it. "Think he's had enough?"

The supposed limp robot shot up, fixing his hands around Sunstreaker's neck with a strength too incredible to be his own.

"WOAH!" Jazz jumped.

"Erghhhh!" Sunstreaker choked.

Bumblebee and Jazz leapt forward, both trying to help pry the mechs hand off of Sunstreaker's neck.

"Primus, he's strong!" Bumblebee gasped, feeling like he was having little effect, despite trying his hardest.

"Don't give up, man!" Jazz shouted back. "And definitely don't shake his hand!"

They struggled to uncurl the powerful fingers from around Sunstreaker's neck, but they were getting nowhere. Jazz thought this all too familiar, realizing the next course of action that would be required…

Sunny started waving his hands about as his optics were steadily dimming, as if to warn Jazz and Bee to stand back. Jazz noticed Sunny bringing his gun up.

"Bee, get back!"

Jazz and Bee turned and ran back, just as Sunny brought his electron-pulse gun up point blank to the mechs face and pulled the trigger. There was a deafening bang, followed by dead silence. Jazz and Bee looked back. The mech's head was gone, it had been completely vaporised. The rest of his body still sat upright and as they watched his hands fell away from Sunstreaker's neck, to rest lifelessly at his sides.

Having seen all he needed from above the scene, Laserbeak's eye's flashed before taking flight and swiftly flying away. He was to return to his master and divulge all the information collected.

Jazz trudged slowly towards Sunstreaker, looking down at him.

"Sunny's been knocked offline for the moment. The blast shorted him out. Come help me get him up, Bee."

Bee ran over, kneeling down and putting one of Sunstreaker's big arms over his shoulders. Jazz did the same with the other arm, and together they both lifted him up between them.

"He's a pretty heavy guy, ain't he?" Jazz smirked, as they begun walking down the alley in the direction Hound had gone.

"Sure is. Doesn't look nearly as scary when he's offline either. In fact, he actually looks kinda…peaceful," Bumblebee said, almost baffled.

"Pfft! Sunny peaceful?! Never thought I'd hear those two words in the same sentence together!" Jazz laughed.

Bumblebee chuckled a little.

"Hey, do you think Hound's okay, Jazz?"

"Let me just get him up on the comm. link right now."

They stopped walking as Jazz tried to raise Hound through the comm. link. "Jazz to Hound, over."

A few astro seconds later, Hound replied. "This is Hound, over."

"How'd things go down your way? You alright?"

"I'm fine, thank you. Things didn't go so well though, I'm afraid. He got away. Transformed and was off like a shot. My bulkier form wasn't much of a match for him in the speed arena."

"Hey, man, you did your best. Anyways, it's cool, we got some pretty good evidence here, not to mention some interesting info."

"Everything went well for you guys, then?"

"Err, for the most part, yeah. Sunny's out of it at the moment, but he should be fine. So how's about we return to base now and share our interesting findings with Prime?"

"Indeed. I could do with a nice can of high grade after this."

"Yeah, I think we all could. Hound, meet you back at base for that drink."

"Will do. Hound out."

Jazz switched off the comm. link, and turned to Bumblebee.

"Well, lil' Bee, lets transform and roll outta here. I'll take Sunny."

"Sure thing, Jazz," Bee grinned.

Jazz transformed and Bee helped ease Sunstreaker onto Jazz's roof securely, before transforming himself. Both drove away steadily, looking forward to drinking some good high grade when they got back to base, leaving behind the eerie quietness that now fell on the empty alley in downtown Iacon.

A/N: (The hand shake line may sound familiar if you've seen the season 2 episode, 'Enter the Nightbird', seemed fitting to stick it in here…)

I've just finished typing up and editing chapter 2 at 1.37 in the morning, wooo. My eye's are really dry now, I need to get off the computer! Once again, I would like to say thank you to my wonderful beta reader, tomorrow4eva, you are fantastic! Anyways, I hope people enjoyed it, reviews are always extremely appreciated. Thank you for reading.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** 'Transformers' does not belong to me. It belongs to ye olde Hasbro

**DECEPTION HQ, KAON CITY**

Upon returning to Decepticon Headquarters in Kaon city, a dark and ravaged part of Cybertron, Laserbeak immediately set himself in Soundwave's cassette compartment, transmitting that he had news. Megatron was sat in a mammoth metal chair inside the operations room, Soundwave standing before him. Two of the seekers, Thundercracker and Starscream, were stood off to the left side of the room, listening with interest, one more so than the other…

"Ahhhh, Laserbeak, what interesting news do you bring us now?" Megatron smirked, leaning back in his chair.

"Laserbeak, proceed," Soundwave droned, pressing the 'play' button. The incident from downtown Iacon begun to play out. Megatron listened intently, resting his head on his hand. One part of the recording sparked Megatron's cerebro circuits,

"_About four and a half breems, maybe seven if you're lucky. You've never felt anything like it before_, _it's amazing. You feel like you could take on the entire universe. Nothing beats the rush through your circuits."_

Megatron's eyes glowered and he leaned forward. He listened to the rest of the recording eagerly, and delighted in the struggle he heard the Autobot's having with the drugged up mech. Standing further away, Starscream listened in an almost trance-like state, his mouth open and red eyes glowing at what he heard. All sorts of thoughts and ideas were already running through his processors…

The recording came to an end. Soundwave remained where he was, awaiting further orders. Megatron smiled menacingly and got up. "Do you know what we could do with this? With this drug?"

"Ahhh, mighty Megatron, I know!" Starscream answered excitedly.

"Quiet!" Megatron shouted.

Starscream looked offended and annoyed, but remained quiet.

"It was a rhetorical question; I know exactly what wecando with it!" Megatron begun pacing. "Imagine a Decepticon army built up of super powered, physically enhanced Transformers, not afraid of throwing their sparks away, violence and brutality their reaction to everything. Imagine-"

"But mighty Megatron," Starscream gleefully interrupted, "How would YOU control them? It doesn't appear they would take orders from anyone in that crazed state."

Thundercracker put his hand to his face, sighing.

Megatron ceased his pacing.

"Starscream…," He simmered, glaring in his direction, "You fool. I have my ways and methods. And I don't plan on sharing any of them with you anytime soon!"

Starscream looked taken aback and disgusted with Megatron's outburst.

"Now leave my sight before I reduce you to cosmic dust!" Megatron's eyes glowed, deadly serious.

"Yes, _Lord Megatron_" Starscream spat as he turned on his heel and stomped out of the Operations room.

"Thundercracker, keep an optic on him," Megatron hissed, his optics still on the door Starscream had just left through.

"Yes, Lord Megatron," Thundercracker followed hurriedly in Starscream's footsteps. When the door sealed itself shut, Megatron turned to face the silent Soundwave again.

"Soundwave, I want some of that drug and a test subject, there's a lot of work to be done. Get them any way you can, but DO NOT draw the attention of the Autobots. We would do well to have the advantage of surprise on our side. I will not have any plans foiled by those fools."

Megatron looked deep in processing; his cerebro circuits were probably running through a hundred different things at once.

"Yes, Lord Megatron, as you command," As Soundwave turned to immediately depart Decepticon HQ, Megatron spoke again. "Do not fail me, Soundwave. Do not come back until you have exactly what I've asked for."

Soundwave paused in his stride, "Understood, Lord Megatron. Failure is never an option."

His cold face glinted under the light as he continued on his way.

* * *

Starscream stared intensely at Soundwave who was making his way to one of the HQs exits, practically burning holes into him. 

"'Bot on a mission, hmmm?" Starscream snarled. "I wonder where Megatron has sent _him_."

Thundercracker, who was throwing energon cubes into a huge generator, paused in his actions, taking a short break.

"Who cares? He's always getting Soundwave to do stuff, what's new? And Screamer, you really need to stop trying Megatron's patience, I tell ya, one of these days he's gonna blow-"

"Shut up!" Starscream stepped right in front of Thundercracker. "Do you really think I'm afraid of Megatron?! 'One of these days', you will take orders from me! The entire Decepticon army will!" Starscream steamed.

"Whatever, Screamer," The blue seekers went back to work. "Are you gonna give me a hand with this or what? And where on Cybertron is Skywarp?"

Starscream simply screeched and kicked some of the energon cubes over before storming off.

**

* * *

**

**AUTOBOT HQ, IACON CITY**

Ratchet was sat quietly in the med bay hard at work, both fascinated and horrified by what he had learnt about the drug he'd been asked to investigate. He began collecting the rest of his findings onto a data pad, not even raising his head when Optimus came through the doors.

"Ratchet, how does the research go?" Optimus asked, walking up to the desk Ratchet was working at.

"It goes…," Ratchet paused as he carefully moved a full test tube from one side of the desk to the other, "quite well." He finished looking up at Optimus.

"Excellent. Can you tell me what you have learnt?"

"Yes; however, it may be useful for Ultra Magnus to hear this as well. Is he around?"

Optimus nodded. "He is indeed. He was in Tactical command last time I saw him. I will go and get him. Bear with me, Ratchet."

"Thanks, Prime."

Optimus excited the med bay and returned a short while later with Ultra Magnus at his side. Magnus looked hopeful.

"Okay, Ratchet, we're listening," Optimus said.

"Okay, right," Ratchet accessed the data pad. "Simply put, the drug is some kind of stimulant. I'm sure you're both aware of the common effects of stimulants; maintaining alertness, sometimes heightened awareness, boosting endurance and concentration…"

Both of the huge Autobots nodded their heads.

"Well, this is that and more. As well as giving its users these traits, it also increases their energy outputs by ridiculous amounts, thus their physical strength and pain tolerance is higher than normal. It has its down side also, the burn out period after must be terrible. After over exerting themselves like that… Not to mention that the side effects it has will probably vary from user to user, making them that more unpredictable."

"Hmmm," Optimus sighed, crossing his arms and bringing a large hand up to his chin. "This is not good at all. In fact, this could be a serious threat, especially if this information falls into the wrong hands…"

"I know exactly what you mean. We're going to have to contain this as much as possible, otherwise we could have a crisis on our hands," Ultra Magnus added, concern on his face.

"I only fear that it may have already fallen into the wrong hands…the Decepticons have been awfully quiet lately, not one of their most well know traits…," Optimus said, more to himself.

"That's for sure. Optimus, what do you want to do about this?" Magnus turned to face the commander.

"To the operations room. We have a lot of work ahead of us, and perhaps much more…," Before leaving with Ultra Magnus, Optimus turned to Ratchet. "Ratchet, I will return later to see Bluestreak. I would like a sitrep on his current condition."

"Yes, Prime, no problem."

Ratchet looked over to the other side of the room, where Bluestreak lay curtained off from view. There was complete silence and stillness, the same as there had been the entire time Blue had been there.

* * *

A large figure strode patiently around some of the rougher parts of Iacon, cold, blue metal shining under the city lights. A rifle held in one large hand, yet a purple badge displayed on his chest, his appearance here would have confused or terrified any onlooker. Prowling around Autobot turf gave him somewhat of an energon rush. Though Soundwave was mostly silent, only speaking when required, a lot went on in his head. Ninety five percent of it stayed in there, no one ever learning of it. It was easy for others to be fooled into thinking Soundwave was nothing more than a puppet who did exactly what Megatron told him and didn't really think for himself, a shell of a robot, but they couldn't be more wrong. Perhaps that was one of the things that made Soundwave so deadly. 

Soundwave's highly tuned audio receptors picked up activity close by. He backed up to a wall and moved along slowly and carefully. Reaching the end, he stuck his head around the corner, rifle at the ready incase trouble awaited. Spotting the source of the noise, Soundwave's optics locked onto a purple 'bot about seven metres away, who was busy fiddling with something. Soundwave scanned it and knew exactly what it was. The robot was talking to himself. "Damn these big hands of mine! Why don't they just make these little things bigger? Do they think we've all got mini-bot hands? Where's that short ass Wildblast when I need him?"

The robot probably would have kept babbling, had Soundwave not stepped in. A large hand clamped over the smaller mechs mouth, the other catching the tube of glowing green liquid with ease, before it smashed on the floor.

"Whoaa, what's this all about?!" The mech asked, his voice muffled. "You're a big 'bot, how'd you sneak up on me? If it's about what happened in the Electric bar, I didn't do it, I just, uhhh, happen to know a lot about it. But Wildblast knows more, maybe you should go find him instead, yep."

The mech struggled to get free of Soundwave's iron grip, but it was fruitless. Soundwave's voice made the robot jump a little when he spoke. "Struggling is futile. You will come with me. No communication is required."

"Do I have any choice in the matter?"

"Negative."

"Can I just ask who you are and where you are taking me?!"

"Do you desire deactivation?"

"No! I'll shut up now."

No more was said as Soundwave scooped the jittery mech up under one arm and took flight back towards Decepticon HQ.

* * *

**AUTOBOT HQ, OPERATIONS ROOM**

Having been hard at work for quite some time now, Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus were starting to piece together their plans for the prevention of a possible crisis that could be heading their way. One could never be too safe, especially when Decepticons were in the equation.

"I think if we get the strike team organised and notify the other factions, that's as much as we can do right now. City patrols will need to increase, and no one is to patrol on their own. Our main priority is preventing the Decepticons getting their hands on any of the research or the stimulant. Am I missing anything, Magnus?" Optimus asked.

Magnus, who was sitting across the table, spoke. "Nothing I'm aware of, Prime. I agree, it's just a matter of getting the strike team together for their briefing now and notifying the other factions."

"Okay," Optimus continued, "we are both in agreement that the strike team will consist of the following Autobots: Prowl, Jazz, Kup, Ironhide, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker?"

"Affirmative," Magnus replied.

"Excellent. And we must organise a meeting with the Wreckers and Grimlock and friends."

"Agreed," Magnus nodded his head. "Prime, what task would you like me to undertake?"

"I will brief the strike team. Magnus, I'll leave the Wreckers and Grimlock to you," Optimus said, rising from his chair.

"Understood," Magnus answered, doing the same. "Well, I'm off to go and entertain Grimlock then. He finds me somewhat amusing for reasons I don't quite understand. It will be interesting to speak to Springer also, for the first time in awhile."

Optimus nodded his head sincerely, "Indeed. Well, old friend, I'll see you soon. I will contact you if any incidents arise in your absence."

"Thanks, Prime. I'll notify you when I'm returning."

Waving, Ultra Magnus departed, leaving Optimus in the operations room by himself. Walking over to Teletraan, Optimus spoke into the inbuilt microphone, broadcasting his voice throughout HQ,

"This is Optimus Prime. Would the following Autobots make their way to the operations room immediately: Prowl, Jazz, Kup, Ironhide, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker. Thank you."

Optimus moved away from Teletraan and slowly took a seat, waiting in the empty room.

* * *

**AUTOBOT HQ, THE TWINS QUARTERS**

"And that was when I blew that slagger's head off. There was nothing left of it," Sunstreaker smirked.

Sideswipe, who was sitting on the floor with his legs stretched out in front of him, didn't find things so amusing,

"I can't believe he messed you up like that though. I mean, if it had been some Deceptacreep, I _might _have got it, but some puny 'bot? That's weird, bro…"

"Yeah, well, like I said, he was drugged up to his optics on that stuff. Amazing what a little juice can do for some no-good weakling, huh? I've been thinking, imagine how strong someone like me would be with some of that stuff. I'd be unstoppable!"

Sideswipe frowned, "Yeah, well, don't go getting any ideas, Sunny. You don't need any of that crap."

"I _know _I don't" Sunstreaker growled, "But-"

"No buts, Sunstreaker, I'm not listening," Sideswipe waved a hand in dismissal.

"LISTEN!" Sunstreaker fumed. If there was one thing Sunstreaker hated, it was being ignored. Sideswipe sighed, turning his head to the side. There was just no reasoning with Sunstreaker sometimes. In fact, a lot of the time.

"Just think, if we used that stuff to fight the Decepticons, they wouldn't stand a chance. I'm telling you, it shouldn't just be pushed aside, I think there's more uses for it."

Sideswipe shifted in annoyance, "Sunstreaker, that's stupid. It turns 'bots into monsters. What good would we be fighting the Deceps like that?" Sideswipe could be just as stubborn as his brother.

"Whatever, there's probably a way around that. Ratchet could do some tweaking or something. I think you're just too scared to try it, you're afraid of what might happen-"

"You should be too!" Sideswipe cut in.

"But if I could be stronger than what I am now, I'd want to take that chance. I wanna be stronger 'Sides, stronger than what I am now, Sunstreaker said, slightly worked up and seemingly slipping into a world of his own. Sideswipe was starting to feel distressed at what his twin was saying. He had a bad feeling in his fuel tank about all of this.

"Bro, you're starting to freak me out a bit, just listen to me a-"

Sideswipe was cut off by Prime's voice filling the room. "_T__his is Optimus Prime. Would the following Autobots make their way to the operations room immediately: Prowl, Jazz, Kup, Ironhide, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker. Thank you_"

"What's up now, I wonder. Hopefully something exciting," Sunstreaker jumped up.

Sideswipe stood up too, watching his brother as he waltzed out of the room with worried optics.

* * *

**A/N:** About time! Sorry to have kept people waiting for so long. I have mixed feelings about how chapter 3 turned out. Thanks again to my beta reader, tomorrow4eva, you are such a big help to me! And can I just say, having recently read the final issue of Megatron Origin- I want more! I was totally drawn into it and loved learning a bit more about Sentinel Prime and the like. I hunger for more! Feed me IDW! 


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** 'Transformers' does not belong to me, It belongs to ye olde Hasbro.

Also, just want to say a big thanks to all the people that have reviewed so far, thank you!! I love hearing what people think.

**PROTIHEX: OUTSKIRTS**

Having traveled all the way from Autobot HQ in Iacon, Magnus was glad to be nearing his destination. Magnus wasn't small by any standards, so he didn't get around as fast as some of the younger Autobots, but that certainly didn't mean he was slow. Hot Rod had found this out on numerous occasions. Magnus decided it was time to contact Grimlock.

"Grimlock, this is Ultra Magnus."

There was a crackle, and then a gruff voice responded, "This Grimlock."

"I'm nearing your coordinates now. Are The Wreckers there yet?"

Grimlock snorted. "No, Wreckers never on time. Who care about Wreckers anyway?"

"I care because I need to speak with them," Magnus said firmly.

Grimlock laughed. "Magnus hot head."

"Me? A hot head?" Magnus sighed, exasperated. "Grimlock, I'll see you in a breem or so."

Magnus cut off the transmission and continued speeding to the meeting point. Any time spent with Grimlock and his team was often too much time. They were a team that most found difficult to understand and get along with, and they liked it just fine that way. Magnus knew he was in for a stressful time, but he was the best 'bot to do this. Not to mention it was part of his job description, being the Autobots' spokesman and all. He remembered the time Prowl had once tried to work with Grimlock…Things had been problematic to say the least…

After driving along more deserted, dull ground, Magnus spotted the distinctive form of Grimlock ahead. He had his back to Magnus with his hands on his hips, and appeared to be talking to the rest of the team. Grimlock undeniably had a natural air of authority about him. Many mechs had been fooled into thinking Grimlock was lacking in the intelligence department or unfit for leadership simply by the way he spoke, only to be proved sorely wrong. Often literally. Grimlock was actually a skilled commander and strategist. Rumour had it that he spoke the way he did on purpose so mechs really did think he wasn't very intelligent, as Grimlock viewed most of the intelligent as weak fighters. That way, they thought he just did everything through brute force and sheer toughness, the image Grimlock liked to project. There was certainly much more to Grimlock than met the eye.

Hearing the sound of Magnus' engine approaching, Grimlock turned around.

"Well, look who it is. Little Prime," He grinned. 'Bots often got a bit worried when Grimlock grinned. You couldn't blame them.

Magnus transformed to robot mode, grimacing slightly at the nickname Grimlock regularly used for him. He had given up nagging Grimlock about it as it only fuelled his use of it.

"Hello, Grimlock. Slag, Sludge, Swoop, Snarl," Magnus nodded his head acknowledging each of them. Each repaid the gesture.

Ultra Magnus took a quick scan of the area. It was an old, disused factory, or what was left of one. Like most of the area surrounding it, it was falling to pieces. It was probably a factory that had been raided by the Decepticons and left to deteriorate, Magnus processed.

"Me Grimlock and Thrash Force busy. We not wait long for Wreckers. We not have to wait for anyone." Grimlock said firmly.

"Yeah, Thrash Force not do waiting," Swoop added.

"Oh, I know," Magnus smiled, choosing his words carefully, "I know it's…demanding, but please have a little patience, this is important," He finished, turning to face them.

"Hmpf," was all he got from Grimlock, who crossed his arms over his chest.

"I'm going to contact Springer right now, and find out their current position. Bear with me," Magnus said calmly.

Grimlock surprisingly relented a little. "Okay, Little Prime. We wait bit longer. No more."

The rest of his team voiced their agreement with their leader, beginning to weary Magnus slightly. He turned around and tried getting through to Springer. It didn't take long.

"Springer, this is Ultra Magnus."

"Whoaa! This is Springer."

Magnus could hear a lot of noise in the background, mainly the sound of engines gunning and occasional shouting. Just general Wrecker noise.

"Erm, Springer. Protihex, ETA?"

"Oh yeah, we're running a little late, right? Sorry, but we've just had a TONNE of fun with Devastator. ETA…very soon," Springer finished smoothly.

Magnus frowned, "Very soon? Can you give me a more-"

"Keep looking," Springer terminated the transmission.

Magnus sighed, dropping his arms to his sides. He peered around the surrounding area with his big blue optics. Sure enough, a few nano-kliks later, the form of seven vehicles came speeding and flying towards them from the distance. Magnus couldn't imagine the amount of Energon the Wreckers got through. They were constantly on the move and always at top speed. Things with them were never boring, and he could see why Hot Rod often mentioned offhandedly that he 'wanted in' with The Wreckers.

As they got closer, the noise became almost unbearable. Coming up close- too close for Magnus' liking-, they came skidding to a halt, all trying to out-best one another. Twintwist bumped into the back of Topspin, spinning around wildly. Kicking up dust everywhere, they transformed.

"Every time, Twintwist, every time! Watch the fraggin' thrusters!" Topspin complained.

"How does he do it?" Broadside said, shaking his head and flexing his joints.

"With great skill," Twintwist answered for himself, grinning.

"Yeah, the skill of Devastator at a game of hide and seek," Roadbuster snickered.

Springer ignored his teammates, walking up to Magnus with a brilliant grin on his face. Springer was an attractive looking mech with a constant sparkle in his optics. He had an abundance of confidence and optimism, always looking on the bright side of life. The bright side of course being the thrill of combat and destruction of Decepticons.

Springer grabbed Magnus' hand, shaking it vigorously. "Hey, Magnus, how's it going? Long time no see, pal."

Magnus smiled sincerely. "Indeed. Prime sends his regards. Things are okay for the most part."

"Nice, how is the big fella? His arm sorted?"

"Yes, fixed without any complications. Prime is well."

Looking behind Magnus, Springer waved at Grimlock. "Hey Grimlock, how's things with Team Bash Brains going?" He joked

Grimlock shot up straight in annoyance. "You wrong! Thrash Force! Get it right, stupid," Grimlock huffed. The rest of the team stirred slightly, not finding it funny.

"Yeah, same difference," Springer brushed it off.

Grimlock growled, Slag and Snarl latching onto both of his arms, holding him back.

Standing behind Springer were the rest of the Wreckers. Roadbuster was cleaning his rifle, whilst the others dusted themselves down first. They had all evidently just come out of a fight; they were covered in fresh scratches and grime, minor damage and cracks in their armour. All in a days work for the Wreckers. They didn't always come out looking this good.

"Sludge say you guys look like mess," Sludge said pointing a finger at them.

"No slag! We've just had some playtime with Devastator. Funnily enough, he likes to wreck things," Topspin joked.

Grimlock growled, optics glowing. Topspin quietened down.

Taking the silence as his opportunity, Magnus spoke,

"Okay, everyone, just a moment," He said calmly, turning to Springer, "Springer, what happened with Devastator?" He asked.

"Heh, same old. Megatron had the Constructicons working on some Energon pit in Kalis. We went and crashed their party, they got all pissy and merged into Devastator. Nothing we couldn't deal with, huh, Wreckers?"

"Ain't nothing we can't deal with," Whirl answered, clapping his hands together.

Grimlock snorted.

"How did you guys deal with him?" Magnus asked curiously.

"Offered him some Energon Goodies!" Roadbuster joked.

"Me and Broadside distracted the dope in the air whilst the others wound a chain around his ankles. Came down like a tonne of Energon cubes," Springer smiled at the memory.

"Yeah, didn't take long 'til they split and scattered," Roadbuster continued, still focused on cleaning his rifle. His rifle was his baby, just like the rest of his weapons.

Magnus rubbed his chin. "Strange, it's been quiet on the Decepticon front in Iacon. But we've got other problems, which brings me to why I gathered you all here. Everyone, please close in," Magnus instructed, motioning with his large arms for everyone to gather around. They did so, Springer and Grimlock standing either side of him.

"The information I'm about to share with you is strictly confidential and extremely dangerous if it falls into the wrong hands, namely the Decepticons. No one else is to know," Magnus paused for emphasis, looking at them. They all nodded in understanding, except for Grimlock, who Magnus knew just wanted to be awkward.

"Little Prime, get on with!" Grimlock urged impatiently.

"There is a drug- a dangerous one- circulating around some of the rougher parts of Iacon. We're currently unaware if it extends outside of Iacon. Some Autobots have had difficulties dealing with its users. One Autobot, Bluestreak, is still in stasis lock after attempting to restrain one."

A few frowns were evident on his audiences' faces.

"Ratchet has learned that this drug is a type of stimulant, and increases strength and pain tolerance at the cost of the user's self control. They become extremely violent and are indiscriminate in choosing who they attack. One distinguishable feature of its users is glowing neon-green optics. They-"

"Wait a nano-klik," Springer cut in. The other Wreckers were looking at each other.

"Sounds familiar, don't it," Twintwist said.

Magnus narrowed his blue optics.

"Yeah. We encountered some glitch like that. He had glowing green eyes like you described. Was down some road in Kalis," Springer said, rubbing his chin.

Magnus looked intrigued. "Is that so? What did you do?"

"Blew his head off," Roadbuster said plainly.

"Yeah, damn glitch wouldn't stay down! Even Springer got knocked down on his aft," Whirl said.

"Did anyone get hurt?" Magnus asked.

"Probably hurts a bit having your head blown off," Roadbuster said.

"No, any of you?"

"No," The Wreckers looked at each other laughing.

"Though Roadbuster's got a nice ding in his behind," Twintwist added.

Roadbuster turned around and pointed to it for everyone to see.

"He went for us, so we took him out," Sandstorm said, more seriously. The Wreckers were often the type to shoot first and ask questions later.

"Understand though, Magnus," Springer said stepping forward, "He wanted to kill us. It wasn't shooting cyberfish in a barrel business. My guys don't prey on the weak. We've got too much honour for that."

Magnus nodded. "I know, Springer. I don't doubt you for a nano-klik."

Grimlock's attention span, or lack of, was at its limit. "Me Grimlock and team bored, what you bring us here for? So Wreckers can brag and make themselves seem tough?" He complained.

The comment did not sit well with The Wreckers.

"Got a problem with us, Grimlock?" Springer questioned.

"Me Grimlock bash your brains!" He shouted, taking a step forward.

Ultra Magnus stepped in front of him, holding a hand up. Springer stood there, not moving a circuit.

"Grimlock, you will do no such thing, unless you desire some time in the brig," He said, forever the voice of reason. "What I need to discuss with you all is important, there's a lot at stake here. I need everyone to calm down and listen."

Grimlock backed up reluctantly, grunting. "Okay, we listen, but only because we have nothing else better to do and me like you, Little Prime. Now tell us," He demanded, crossing his arms. Grimlock acted like he didn't care a lot, but he always knew when something had merit to it and required action.

The tension in the atmosphere eased slightly, and Magnus breathed a quiet sigh of relief. "Prime sent me especially to acquire your help. This is a serious threat we have on our hands. If the Decepticons are able to obtain and utilize this drug, we could have catastrophic times ahead. We know Megatron would just love something like this; it's possible he could cause mass destruction on a scale we haven't encountered yet. Sure, we can deal with a few of these users at a time. But a number of Megatron's warriors? The Decepticon army?"

The faces around Magnus appeared much more serious now, tensions from earlier already seemingly forgotten. The scope of things was settling in.

"What we need to do is contain this problem. We will arrest and detain any user's, or those found with the drug in their possession, and will try and eliminate its production completely. But most of all, we will prevent the Decepticons from learning of and acquiring the drug. I realize how busy all of you are with other duties, but this has become one of our top priorities. We're going to need you to focus on this."

Springer nodded his head firmly, "Of course, Magnus. "

The Wreckers nodded their heads in agreement. They would be ready for anything, as was the nature of the Wreckers.

Springer and Magnus shook hands. "My boys won't let you down. They've practically got Deceptiscum radars built into them. Any Deceps come and try any funny business, we'll take 'em down and out."

"Good. I knew I could count on you," Magnus smiled. Turning to his left, Magnus addressed Thrash Force.

"Grimlock, what do you and your team say?" His smile had vanished. Magnus knew ordering Grimlock about was not the best way to deal with him, it just brought out his stubbornness. Asking him was a much more effective way of getting him to obey orders.

Grimlock was stood firmly with his arms crossed, the others at his sides. His optics narrowed. "We say we ready to bash brain's, what we waiting for?"

Magnus smiled. "Indeed, what are we waiting for?"

* * *

KALIS

Above Kalis, two cybertronian jets flew at what would be considered a slow speed for them. If anyone suspected it was because they were up to no good, they would be right.

"I bet there's a whole bunch of 'em at the Energon pits, Thundercracker. How about we take a look?" Skywarp grinned.

The more sensible of the two spoke. "We have to be careful though. We can't be seen snatching them. Megatron's orders."

"Yeah, aren't we all," Skywarp said absent mindedly, scanning below. Thundercracker didn't even bother mentioning that his reply hadn't made any sense. It was a perfect demonstration of Skywarp's lack of concentration and focus.

"No one sees us, okay, Skywarp?" Thundercracker wanted to make sure he understood.

"Yeah, yeah, I know."

"Good, otherwise Megatron will make us into a new footrest."

Skywarp growled in annoyance. "Thundercracker, shut up."

"You think I'm joking? How about that time he made Starscream be his desk for a-"

"Shut up! That's cause Starscream's a whiner. He should be melted down into…er…metal…rods," Skywarp said, struggling to think of something.

Flying over the entrance to an ore processing facility, Thundercracker spotted two mechs in conversation, totally oblivious to the trouble above them…

"Hey, Skywarp, there's our opportunity," He grinned to himself.

"Perfect. It's like taking Energon goodies from a minibot," Skywarp snarled in excitement.

Both diving down suddenly in synchronicity, the two seekers flew at low altitude. They headed straight for the two innocent mechs on the ground with great speed, transforming into their robot modes mere inches before crashing into them. All the two surprised robots saw were flashes of purple and blue zooming towards them. Before they had even had a chance to get a circuit into gear, the blurs of colour had grabbed a hold of them roughly. Megatron had selected these two especially for this mission.

"Let go! What are you doing?!" One shouted, panic stricken.

"What's the meaning of this?!" The other asked.

Skywarp shook the bigger one he was carrying roughly. "Shut up! What is this, 100 questions?"

"If you scream, I'll drop you," Thundercracker threatened.

"How about in those smelting pools over there, Thundercracker?" Skywarp grinned with excitement.

"Please, don't hurt us!" Pleaded the mech Skywarp was clutching.

"Shut up, slagger!" Skywarp growled, kicking him hard. The robot groaned. "Lets have a bit of fun, Thundercracker! I wanna see him melt!"

Skywarp took a sharp left and headed towards the collection of monstrous smelting pools. They were like horrid, swelling scars on Cybertron's surface from above.

"Skywarp! We're meant to be taking them back to Megatron!"

Thundercracker had barely got the words out of his mouth before he saw Skywarp let go off his wailing captive, and watched the doomed bot' plummet into the pool with a grin on his face. It was disturbing to see how like a sparkling's grin that face was right then.

"Haha, 'Cracker, look at his face, he looks funny," Skywarp laughed, pointing.

Thundercracker flew over to where Skywarp was hovering over the pool. His own captive was either in shock, or knew better then to make any further noises.

"Hahaha, he looks like Starscream in the morning," Thundercracker couldn't help but laugh.

"Yeah, 'cept Screamer don't look THAT good."

If there was one thing the two seekers loved, it was mocking their other member. Especially when he wasn't there to clump them around the head.

Conscious of the time, Thundercracker urged Skywarp along. "We better go and find us another robot, Megatron's going to get impatient."

"Yeah, yeah, won't take half a breem."

The innocent mech Thundercracker was clutching in his steel grip took one last look into the pool with horror, seeing the last of his friend disappear beneath the bubbling the surface...

* * *

**DECEPTICON HQ – KAON**

Amidst a room filled with complex and stunning technology, there laid three motionless robots on cold operating tables. All of the lethal looking tools within the room gave it its sinister appearance and most of the Decepticons tried to avoid setting foot into the room. All but one in particular, that is. Bombshell adored the place; he viewed it as his playroom. It was most often an unfortunate thing to become one of Bombshell's playthings…

Finally, to Bombshell's delight, Megatron came in. He had been itching to divulge his simple, yet workable theory to him, if only so he could engross himself in the work.

"Ahhh, Bombshell. Perhaps you can brighten up my day, unlike those two bumbling fools, Thundercracker and Skywarp. Tell me something _interesting_" Megatron stopped on the other side of the operating table Bombshell was standing at.

Bombshell grinned. "Why yes, of course Lord Megatron. I believe I have a theory you will find most _interesting._"

"Yes? Do share it, Bombshell…" Megatron could never place it, but he'd always harboured a deep dislike of the twisted scientist. He found him particularly irritating. However, his usefulness outweighed Megatron's personal opinion of the Decepticon. Megatron was always sure to keep a close optic on him, however…

"My theory is this," Bombshell begun demonstrating with his hands on the subject, "Simply by placing one of my cerebro shells here," He jabbed at the robots forehead, "then injecting them with the drug, we will be able to control them. They will obey us, and use their enhanced strength to do our- your bidding, Lord Megatron."

"You're going to place a cerebro shell in their heads amongst their cerebro circuitry, I never would have guessed…" Megatron couldn't contain the sarcastic jibe. "Good work, Bombshell, however, it _better _work," Megatron snarled.

The unease between the two was practically palpable. Bombshell looked his leader in the optics. "_Of course,_ Lord Megatron. I will not fail."

His voice irritated Megatron in a different way to Starscream's.

"I trust this won't take long, Bombshell," Megatron turned, making his way towards the door.

Bombshell glared at the back of his leader. "Not long at all, Lord Megatron," The tiniest hint of sarcasm was evident in his voice.

Megatron disappeared through the door, and Bombshell gladly got to work, rubbing his hands together. "Time for some corruption!"

* * *

Inside the operations room, Megatron was lounging in his chair, something he very rarely had time to do. Between all the scheming and attacking, well, there wasn't much of a 'between' at all. Standing at his side was his most loyal officer. 

"Prime and the Autobots must be quite suspicious now, Soundwave. We haven't made our presence known for a while," Megatron said, absorbed in processing.

"All the better to surprise them, Lord Megatron."

Megatron grinned, hands clasped together. "Ahh yes, surprise we shall, Soundwave, very soon…"

Megatron stopped talking and spun around in his chair at the sound of the doors opening.

"Lord Megatron, the work is complete," Bombshell gleamed, clearly proud with himself.

"Good, about time," Megatron said, despite the fact that it hadn't taken Bombshell very long at all. Rising from his chair, he missed the brief look of annoyance on Bombshell's face.

Bombshell lead the way to the lab, with Megatron and Soundwave following. Passing through the lab door, without holding it open for Megatron, Bombshell spoke again. "All three now have cerebro shells implanted. There's only one thing left to do now; put my theory to the test, put it into action. How you want to do that of course, is purely your decision."

Taking a half interested look at the three test subjects, Megatron snickered. "I know that, you fool. We will put it to the test indeed…in Iacon," Megatron's optics lit up. "Let them loose there. See that they get the Autobots attention somehow. They can all have some fun together," Megatron grinned, already imagining the ensuing struggle the Autobots were going to have, images flickering through his processors…

* * *

"This is fraggin' ridiculous." 

"What, was ya planning on taking all three out on your own, Sunshine? You ain't _that _good," Ironhide mocked, trailing slightly behind Sunstreaker.

"Slag off, Ironhide," Sunstreaker growled, "They don't need the entire strike team to take out three glitches. Me and Side's could do this fine by ourselves."

"Why would you want to?" Ironhide never ceased to be amazed by Sunstreaker's lack of humour. To Sunstreaker, something was only funny if someone got hurt, it seemed.

Driving up front, Prowl had been listening. "That kind of defeats the object of a strike team, Sunstreaker," Prowl emphasized 'team'.

"Whatever…," Sunstreaker mumbled, apparently losing interest.

The team traveled in silence for a little while, the sounds of the city playing out all around them. The sounds of their home. The silence made Jazz remember something. "Say, has anyone heard any news on Blue?"

"Nothing. Poor kid…," Kup sighed. "Quiet without him pestering me. Too quiet."

"Ratchet's working hard," Prowl added.

Everyone was left to think for a little while, before Prowl spoke up again. "We are nearing the coordinates. Noise discipline from here onwards. That means the twins too."

Sunstreaker snorted.

"We'll take them by surprise. Remember: avoid using lethal force where possible, Prime wants some detainees for questioning. A dead 'bots is no good for anyone," Prowl sounded like he was about to continue, when a big chunk of metal flew out in front of him.

"What the?" He hit his brakes, and spun out, his side grinding against the object. "Ahh!"

The other Autobots slammed on their own brakes, barely avoiding piling into each other.

"Wooooo!" Sideswipe called.

Prowl was about to issue orders, when he saw a clearly beserked mech come charging at him from the side. His orders changed in an instant. "STRIKE TEAM, TRANSFORM! ASSUME YOUR DESIGNATED ROLES!"

The sounds of metal separating and circuits rearranging themselves dominated the area as the Autobots prepared for action. Prowl wasn't prepared quick enough. "Eurgh!" He shouted as he was tackled powerfully to the ground.

"The other two are coming!" Kup shouted, pointing his rifle to where the first robot had appeared.

Prowl had a look of gritted determination on his face as he struggled to remove the mech from a top of him, his arms quivering from the strength he was exerting to push him back.

Whilst the other three rushed off to deal with the other two threats, Kup and Sunstreaker stayed behind to assist Prowl. Despite his difficult predicament, Prowl had the mission objective first on his mind. "Kup…inhibitor claw…Sunstreaker…" He hadn't finished his sentence before they were both at his side. He was momentarily distracted when he heard Sideswipe shouting. Feeling weaker, he looked to his side and his optics went wide. Kup was preparing the inhibitor claw, but Sunstreaker had his rifle pointed out the mechs head. "SUNSTREAKER, NO!"

Too late. Sunstreaker pulled the trigger, a brief gleam in his optics. Prowl closed his optics to protect them from the flash.

Pushing the headless body off of him, Prowl stood up shakily, glaring at Sunstreaker. "WHAT THE FRAG IS YOUR MALFUNCTION? YOU JUST DISOBEYED A DIRECT ORDER!"

Sunstreaker never answered. He just glared back, smoke still pouring from his rifle.

"I'll deal with this later, we must help the others now," Prowl fumed, rushing off with Kup in tow. Sunstreaker followed behind.

Sideswipe was struggling with the larger of the two remaining robots. Wrestling with him, Sideswipe refused to go down. "Give it up! You can't match my skills, slagger!"

The mech suddenly caught Sideswipe by surprise when he lashed one arm out, dragging his hand down the side of Sideswipe's face.

"Ahhhhh!" Sideswipe screamed, "My optic! I can't see!"

With his right optic put out of commission, Sideswipe was immediately put at a disadvantage. Being at a disadvantage didn't put him out of the fight, however, it simply made it more of a challenge. About to pummel the mech with his newfound annoyance, Sideswipe caught his brother out of the corner of his good optic. "Sunny, I got him," He shouted, straining all his circuits to keep the robot toppling him.

Sunstreaker's face was the epitome of fury. "That's why you let him claw your optic out."

Drawing his fist back, he thrusted it into the robot's back. Sideswipe went sprawling as the robot stood above, roaring. Sparks flew and crackled, electrical moans coming from within his abused systems. Sunstreaker yanked his fist out of the mechs back, getting a few shocks as he did so. Prowl was over in an instant with an inhibitor claw, diving on top of the robot. Sideswipe didn't know if he had ever seen Prowl move so fast.

"He may be damaged, but he can still talk," Prowl spoke whilst applying the restraints. "No thanks to Sunstreaker, we have at least two sources of information."

Sunstreaker shook off his slightly damaged fist. "It's thanks to me you DO have one of those sources. He's lucky he's alive after what he did to Sides."

Sideswipe patted his brother on the shoulder, a silent gesture telling him to let it go.

"Why is it always you two?" Prowl asked, gritting his teeth as he yanked the robot up. "Jazz and Ironhide are managing to deal effectively with the other attacker, why couldn't you?" Prowl was annoyed and wasn't hiding it.

Sunstreaker looked over to where Jazz and Ironhide had the other robot pinned down, whilst Kup applied restraints. He snorted. "Yeah, and look how long its taken them," He knew it wasn't the point, but he didn't care. He just wanted to answer Prowl back.

"Time isn't the main issue here, Sunstreaker, and you know it, Effectively, you've disobeyed one of my direct orders twice: avoid using lethal force where possible," Prowl sighed heavily. "This will be dealt with appropriately when we return to base. I'm not wasting anymore time on you right now." He turned away from the twins, dragging his struggling prisoner over to where the rest of the team were.

"Hnn, whine much?" Sideswipe mocked.

Sunstreaker remained silent, glaring at the retreating back of his commanding officer.

"Almost done," Kup said, wrestling on the restraints. "Done," He stood up, flexing his arms a little.

"Not bad, Kup, my friend," Jazz smiled, despite applying all his strength to keep the mech held down.

"Yeah, not bad for a old timer. Lets get this piece of scrap on his feet," Ironhide said.

The mech struggled violently, but Jazz and Ironhide kept a firm hold of him.

"How's that arm, Ironhide?" Jazz asked.

"Ahh, it's nothing. He just pulled off some armour and yanked a few circuits," Ironhide played down the damage. He would just grit his teeth until he got back to base for repairs.

"Ohhh, you know who looks slagged off," Kup said, watching as Prowl approached. He went to go help him with the prisoner.

"The mission has gone well for the most part. Now we just have to get the prisoners back to base, the missions not complete until then," Prowl stated.

"It's not over 'til it's over," Jazz grinned.

"Hey, what happened to the other one?" Ironhide frowned. "He didn't get away, did he?"

"No, he didn't, Ironhide," Prowl said, turning around. "Perhaps you should ask Sunstreaker."

"Perhaps I will," He said quietly.

Prowl stared over at where the twins were standing, talking among themselves. Sideswipe was doing most of the talking and Sunstreaker was shaking his head a lot.

"Everyone, return to base. After the prisoners are secured, those that need to, go for repairs," Prowl touched the side he'd scraped in the initial contact, testing it. He winced. "Everyone, roll out."

Laserbeak silently slipped away like a shadow from his perch above the scene.

* * *

**DECEPTICON HQ**

Starscream knew exactly where he would be. He was so predictable, and that could get a 'bot killed. That was one of the many things that pleased Starscream about himself; he knew he was anything but predictable.

Entering the lab, he stood in the doorway with his hands on his hips, watching Bombshell fiddle around with some test tubes.

Bombshell didn't even look up. "What do _you _want, Starscream?"

"No, _Bombshell, _this may be more about what _you _want. I have something interesting to propose to you. If you are smart, you will meet me in one cycle at the top. Farewell!"

With that, Starscream left with a devious grin on his face, and an even more devious plan in his head.

* * *

**A/N: **I just want to say thank you to my beta reader, tomorrow4eva, whose help is invaluable to me, and thank you to everyone for reading. Reviews, as always, are much appreciated! 


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:** 'Transformers' does not belong to me, It belongs to ye olde Hasbro.

I just want to say a big thank you to my awesome beta reader, tomorrow4eva and thank you to everyone that has reviewed this story so far- it's all extremely appreciated!

* * *

**AUTOBOT HQ**

"Prowl, congratulations on a mission well done," Optimus nodded, as the officer entered the operations room. Prowl looked quite worn and tired.

"Thank you, Sir. The prisoners are both contained. I will write up a mission log shortly. Any further orders?"

"No," Optimus shook his head. "Get some rest for now, Prowl. When Magnus returns, you can aid him in interrogating the prisoners."

Prowl nodded. "Understood, Sir. Ummm, regarding Sunstreaker…"

"He has been cautioned by myself. He will not be accompanying you on the next mission, as punishment. Hot Rod will replace him."

Whilst being suspended from one mission may not have been a big deal too most 'bots, to Sunstreaker it was exactly that. He lived and breathed missions. Being stuck at HQ and thus, suffering with boredom, was punishment enough for him. If he'd liked staying in the rear with the gear rather than fighting, he'd have become an engineer or comms specialist.

"Go and rest now, Prowl," Optimus urged gently.

He could see that despite Prowl's worn appearance, he was restless. Prowl was never very good at giving his processors a break. Sometimes he had to be forced into taking a break, otherwise he was prone to overloads.

"Yes, Sir," He turned and left.

Optimus turned back to Teletraan, where he had been working on monitoring any unusual activity. Despite telling Prowl to go and take a break, he himself was guilty of not taking one for some time. He just couldn't tear himself away from the console, not when the Decepticons were being this quiet. He had to be the optics and audios of the Autobots; it was his job as commander, his duty. As far as Optimus was concerned, his personal needs came second. He could wait. Rubbing a hand over his optics, he sprung up suddenly when he heard a voice speak over the internal comm. system.

"Optimus Prime, please make your way to the medical bay."

"Hmmmm," Optimus sighed lightly. No doubt Ratchet wanted to check that he was doing exactly what he wasn't- taking time to rest. Optimus took one last look over the screen before him, and then left for the med bay.

* * *

Ratchet looked up from his patient when he heard the doors to the med bay open. It was just who he had expected. 

"Listen, Ratchet," Optimus spoke, walking towards him, "I appreciate your concern, but I must keep a constant optic on-" He stopped, momentarily surprised.

"Is…he online?" Optimus asked, stepping closer to the operating table Ratchet stood at.

"Yeah…yeah, he is," Ratchet nodded, looking down at the prone Bluestreak.

Optimus gauged Ratchet's reaction carefully. Optimus knew something was bothering him, not to mention his lacklustre reaction at having reactivated one of their comrades.

"Ratchet…everything's okay?"

"He has no recollection of the incident," Ratchet blurted.

Prime moved to take a closer look at the resting Bluestreak. Sensing the presence, Bluestreak opened his optics.

"Errrr…Prime…?"

"Not only that," Ratchet continued, "but he had no recollection of a lot of other things. Only bits and pieces of data," Ratchet sighed heavily.

"Is that so," Optimus said, concern in his optics.

"Ask him something,"

Optimus frowned slightly, before turning to look at Bluestreak.

"Bluestreak, can you tell me where we are?"

Bluestreak looked around a bit.

"Are we in the mines? Did something hit me on the head again? Cause, y'know, that happened before. In fact, it's happened three times already."

Optimus' face was full of worry. Whilst he was glad Bluestreak's personality component clearly hadn't been affected, his data loss was still an issue.

"Get some rest, Bluestreak," Optimus sighed gently.

"Rest? Actually, I feel a little tired, which is strange, I don't usually feel this tired, maybe I should get some rest…," Bluestreak babbled.

Optimus looked at Ratchet, who was emanating unease. Ratchet probably blamed himself, thought that he hadn't tried hard enough. Optimus knew how hard he could be on himself. Being a medic had to be one of the most emotionally difficult jobs. Lives were laid in their hands, and no matter how little could be done sometimes, there was always that buried feeling of self-blame, of feeling like you could have done more when things went awry. Optimus sympathized with him.

"Can anything be done?" Optimus asked quietly.

Ratchet crossed his arms, staring down at Bluestreak.

"…I don't know. I have a few ideas, but no guarantees that any of them will work."

"We still have hope then, Ratchet. Just do your best, that's all we can ask for."

"Will do, Prime, will do."

* * *

"It's a shame, Sir, that we do not have the other perpetrator for questioning," Prowl said, striding along side Ultra Magnus. He was still bitter about the situation involving Sunstreaker. 

"Well, at least we still have an opportunity to shed some light on this situation. Hopefully the detainees will be at least a little cooperative."

Prowl grimaced slightly. Ever since the drug had worn off, they had been little more than drones. They hadn't uttered a word, and had shown minimal resistance when they had been moved from their cells to the interrogation room.

Halting outside a door in the bright hallway, Magnus tapped in a code. The complex lock released with a number of electrical whirs and hisses and the door slid open. The sight of two civilian robots restrained in chairs greeted Magnus. They appeared to take little notice of the two Autobots that walked in. Magnus was irked by this, something just didn't sit right.

Magnus took a seat opposite them, and Prowl followed, preparing a data pad.

"My name is Ultra Magnus, I am head of Autobot security. I'm going to ask you some questions. Do you have anything to say before we proceed?"

Ultra Magnus was met with blank stares. Prowl found it unnerving, especially considering how different they were behaving compared to when he had first encountered them.

Magnus simply shook his head, "Okay…First, do you know why you are here?"

One of the robots, a dark purple one, opened his mouth as if he were going to say something. Magnus and Prowl both leaned forward in anticipation. He suddenly shut it again. They sat back.

"Umm, how about you?" Magnus politely directed the question at the other prisoner, an orange mech.

"Ta-tak-ennn," the robot appeared to be having trouble communicating.

Magnus and Prowl both looked perplexed.

"What's wrong, why can't he speak properly?" Magnus turned to Prowl, whom he knew to be more acquainted with the prisoners. Prowl had a confused on his face.

"I- I don't know, Sir, but they haven't spoken since they've been here."

The orange robot struggled in his chair, trying to get their attention.

"Ta-ken. Do some-thing. Head-" He stuttered. Every word sounded like it took all his effort.

Prowl and Magnus listened intently, unsure of what the mech was trying to tell them.

"What was taken? What do you mean by 'head'?" Magnus asked, leaning forward. The purple robot then began to talk.

"Tak-en. Need-help! Heads-look," The mech squirmed in his chair. Things here obviously weren't as they appeared.

"You were taken?" Prowl frowned.

"Who by?" Magnus stared the 'bot in the optics.

The mech's face suddenly looked the picture of fear. He attempted to speak again, as did the other prisoner.

"De-cep-"

"Meg-a-"

Neither had a chance to finish their words as two loud explosions suddenly engulfed the room. Magnus and Prowl both his the deck instantly.

"Stay down," Magnus grimaced, holding his hands on either side of his head. "My audio receptors are ringing…"

"I think my equilibrium chip just shorted…," Prowl groaned.

As the black smoke slowly began to clear, the two Autobots stood up. Gradually, Magnus could see the outlines of the two robots becoming clearer, still in their seats. It was soon obvious why they hadn't moved.

"What?" Prowl gaped.

The smoke cleared further, revealing two headless prisoners. Magnus frowned deeply.

"Their heads…exploded?" Prowl asked.

Cautiously stepping closer to examine the scene, Magnus responded, "It would appear that way, yes."

Magnus looked down the sizzling neck where a head had once rested. Prowl sighed, clearly agitated. "There goes our information."

Magnus turned to look at him. "Not only that Prowl, but two lives have just been lost, in a horrid way. Exactly how and why is unclear now, but I think there's much more to this situation than we realize. You heard what they were about to say."

"Decepticons and-'

"Megatron, exactly. This takes things to another level. And those two weren't Decepticons, which means…"

"Megatron used them," Prowl finished, following the same line of thought as Magnus.

"And we all know Megatron doesn't ask before he uses something," Magnus said grimly.

Prowl turned his head away, sighing, "This is bad."

"My thoughts exactly. It's highly possible two innocent, civilian robots have been killed and we don't even know how. Prime must be informed of these developments immediately."

"Agreed, Sir," Prowl answered firmly.

* * *

Ratchet was hard at thinking when he was interrupted by the sound of an all too familiar voice. 

"Knock, knock," Sideswipe shouted as he walked through the med bay doors, with Sunstreaker beside him. Sunstreaker looked to be in a particularly foul mood.

"Bye, bye" Ratchet sang back, standing up. "You don't need to come for another check up just yet for your optic, so leave before you, I don't know, do something."

"_Actually_, we're here to see Bluestreak," Sunstreaker sneered.

"Yeah, we heard he was awake, Doc," Sideswipe added.

"Ohhh," Ratchet said in understanding, "Well, that's different, why didn't you say so."

"We just did," Sunstreaker retorted.

Ratchet glared at him, unimpressed.

"We heard that he, uhhh…has forgot a lot of stuff," Sideswipe said uneasily.

"Heh, things get around here quick, don't they."

"And Blue's not even about the place!" Sideswipe grinned.

Ratchet chuckled lightly, before continuing, "He doesn't remember everything, no. Hopefully some familiar faces will jump some circuits. But don't worry, I'm…working on things," Ratchet finished quietly. "Can't talk long, though. He needs his rest."

"Okay, Doc," Sideswipe nodded, patting his twin on the shoulder.

They made their way over to Bluestreak's bed, whilst Ratchet busied himself with doctor's things.

Sunstreaker and Sideswipe each stood at opposite sides of the bed, looming over Bluestreak. The scene was not unlike a tiger waiting to pounce on its prey.

"Hey, Blue, how's it going?" Sideswipe asked.

Bluestreak opened his optics to be met by two similar faces.

"Hey Blue, do you remember me? You must remember the hottest looking mech in town," Sunstreaker said seriously, running his hands over his head vents.

"And you must remember me. Remember not so long ago when we stole the horns off of Cliffjumper's helmet and he couldn't tell what was wrong? And later he socked you one in the chassis?" Sideswipe smiled.

"Hahaha, I remember that," Sunstreaker laughed, "Bluestreak wouldn't stop whining about how much it hurt! Hahaha, a mini-bot punch!"

Bluestreak was just staring at them both with wide optics.

The twins both looked at him and spoke at the same time, "So, do you remember me?"

Static silence fell for a nano-klik or two.

"Heyyy," Bluestreak smiled at Sunstreaker, "I remember you. You're Bumblebee, aren't you?"

Sunstreaker looked mortified. "WHAT?"

Sideswipe doubled over, trying to contain his laughter. "Actually Blue, that definitely ain't Bumblebee," He managed with the biggest grin on his face.

"I should completely slag you for that insult," Sunstreaker fumed, clenching his fists. Steam coming out of his head vents wouldn't have been such a strange sight right now.

Bluestreak seemed oblivious to the damage he had just dealt on Sunstreaker's ego.

"Oh wait, I remember," He spoke up again, "You're the angry one, aren't you? Can't remember the name, though," Bluestreak frowned.

Sunstreaker's jaw just dropped.

Sideswipe quickly and wisely tried to divert the attention from his brother. "What about me? Come on Blue, what's my name?"

Bluestreak narrowed his optics in concentration.

"Sideswipe."

"Yes!" Sideswipe punched a fist in the air.

Sunstreaker looked annoyed, "Hey! How can you remember him, and not me? We're twins!"

"Sorry, bro, I guess some 'bots are just more memorable than others," Sideswipe bragged, grinning.

"I'll make your face more memorable in a minute," Sunstreaker growled.

Ratchet turned and looked over at the twins and Bluestreak, smiling lightly. He was glad Bluestreak had visitors, he knew how much he liked others company.

Turning back to his work, the smile faded. The uneasiness once again sunk in. He didn't know whether Bluestreak would ever have the rest of his memory data back, and if there was a way, would the price be worth it?

* * *

**DECEPTICON HQ**

Within the operations room, a number of Decepticons were gathered around a large round table. On it was displayed a computerised, interactive map of Cybertron.

"Of course," Megatron spoke, "to power these assaults, we need more bodies. After the briefing, Starscream, Thundercracker, Skywarp, Thrust, Dirge and Astrotrain will all go and find us some new ones," Megatron smiled. A very creepy sight indeed.

"But, Mighty Megatron," Starscream cut in, "why are we having these pathetic weaklings fight our battles for us? We are more than capable of taking on the Autobots ourselves," He sneered. "Unless, Mighty Megatron, you are afr-"

"Enough, Starscream! No more of your incessant whining. This is a briefing, not a _debate,_" Megatron snarled, staring harshly at Starscream.

Astrotrain looked at Dirge, both of them smirked at each other.

"It is quite simple really, let me _break it down_ for you," He hissed, "Once my plan is fully underway, the Autobots will be stretched thin and almost completely overwhelmed by numerous, constant assaults from the drones. Hopefully in the process, many will be permanently deactivated," He gleamed, "Once we begin to weaken their forces and morale, it's only a matter of time. We shall strike them at the root; Autobot HQ in Iacon. It will be a huge tactical blow to them, one that we will not allow them to recover from. You see, whilst they're at their weakest and pre-occupied with those mindless drones, we will be at out strongest and their base will be ours for the taking. Prime will be mine to crush!" Megatron finished, clenching a fist.

Skywarp groaned with all the information just bestowed upon them.

Starscream stared on speechless, a very rare occurrence indeed.

Megatron chuckled darkly, "Are we quite done now, _Starscream_?"

Starscream turned his head away. "Yes, _Mighty Megatron_," He spat.

Megatron continued with his original line of thought, "Once Bombshell has finished implanting the cerebro shells and injecting them, we will split them into two squads and send them on simultaneous attacks at these locations: here," He slammed his hand down on Uraya on the map, "and here," He finished, bringing his other hand down on the edge of Iacon. "There they will draw the Autobots' attention."

Bombshell, who was stood around the opposite side of Megatron, took this opportunity to speak. "Lord Megatron, we are running quite low on the stimulant, more will need to be created soon."

Megatron frowned at him. "And? I thought being a scientist, you were more than capable of that, Bombshell. Or are your skills _inadequate_?"

Bombshell felt his Energon boil. How dare Megatron try to humiliate him in front of everyone! He knew it was something Megatron revelled in. "Of course not, Lord Megatron, but there is one ingredient that is harder to acquire than others."

"Yess?" Megatron urged him on, growing impatient.

"It can only be found in an ore extracted from the Kalis area," He said.

"Fine, I will send the Constructicons to gather more," Megatron waved a hand. "That concludes this briefing. Everyone knows what they must do."

A chorus of 'Yes, Lord Megatron' was heard, except for Starscream, who instead chose to say 'Lord Megamouth' quietly for his own satisfaction.

As the rest of the Decepticons begun to leave the room, Megatron spoke again. "Bombshell, stay behind."

Mentally sighing, Bombshell turned around, holding his hands together. "Yes, Lord Megatron?" He forced a smile. It looked terrible.

"Regarding the two prisoners the Autobots have taken. You anticipated such an event, yes? They will not be able to gain anything from them, _will they_?"

Bombshell grinned genuinely, "_Oh no_, Lord Megatron. I made amendments to their head modules and the cerebro shells. They are programmed to self-destruct upon even an attempt to divulge anything Decepticon related. The Autobots will be clueless, the explosion will incinerate the cerebro shell."

"Very good, Bombshell," Megatron smirked, "Hopefully they'll take some Autobots with them."

"Oh yes," Bombshell said excitedly, "I had that in mind as well," He lied.

"Hmm, of course," Megatron sneered, "Nothing is more gratifying than Autobots perishing. Soon enough, it shall happen en masse. Cybertron will be under my control…ahhh, yes."

* * *

**Earlier**

"Ahhh, yes, Bombshell," Starscream grinned as he arrived on the roof of Decepticon HQ. Bombshell was already there waiting. He looked agitated.

"You're late!" Bombshell spat, "You told _me _not to be late! What is the meaning of this?"

"Late?" Starscream exclaimed dramatically, "Not according to my internal timer. Yours is obviously wrong," He chuckled.

Bombshell was further annoyed, "Wrong? I think not-"

"Bombshell," Starscream soothed, "This is not what I asked you here for. Do you want to hear my proposition or not?"

Without waiting for Bombshell to reply, he carried on, "Of course you do," He smiled. "We both know how terribly deluded and pathetic a leader Megatron is…"

"Yesss," Bombshell eyed the seeker warily.

"He doesn't deserve to lead the Decepticons. Many others agree, but are too afraid to do anything about it. But not I, no. And I think neither are you," He smiled darkly.

"Starscream, get to the point, I have no time for your folly," Bombshell narrowed his optics.

Starscream's looked taken aback slightly. "Okay, Bombshell," He smirked, "Lets get down to business. With your knowledge and ability to produce the stimulant and cerebro shells, and my skills as a leader, we are more than capable of taking control of the Decepticons, are we not?"

Bombshell hummed, knowing exactly where this was going. "Yess."

"Of course. So imagine if we are able to establish our own secret force. It will be superior to Megatron's. With a stronger force, the other Decepticons will have no choice but to join us. Not like they'd rather stay with Megatron anyway…," He trailed off. "Megatron will be destroyed by his own army, how wonderfully ironic," Starscream smiled, his optics windows to a dreaming, wishful mind.

As flawed as some of the plan was, due to Starscream's deluded ways, Bombshell could see merit in it. Including what it could bring him. "Ahhhh, yes, Starscream, I see the benefits of such a plan… However, how do you propose we keep a force hidden under Megatron's olfactory sensors? Or did you not think that far ahead?"

"_Actually, _Bombshell, I did. Again, how wonderfully ironic that one of Megatron's old bunkers should be used to create the army that will destroy him," Starscream laughed, lavishing the thought, "It is old, but in good enough shape for what we require of it. See, Bombshell? I have thought this out. Now you have heard my plan, what do you say?" He stared intently at Bombshell.

"I will participate, under one circumstance," Bombshell turned his head.

"Yes?" Starscream hissed. He strongly disliked going by other mechs terms.

"I command along with you. I will not settle for second in command," He waved a hand.

Starscream clenched his jaw, extremely annoyed. How dare he make demands when Starscream was going to allow him the privileged position of being his second in command?

"Fine!" He relented, "But just remember who put you there!"

"How could I forget?" Bombshell murmured quietly to himself.

"We shall speak again soon, Bombshell, but for now, try to procure as much of the stimulant as possible. We'll need as much as we can get. Farewell for now, comrade," He smirked as he walked away, off to whatever other crafty things he was up to, no doubt.

Bombshell grinned delightfully at the retreating back of Starscream. Indeed, he would go along with Starscream's plan- for it would benefit his own personal agenda. The day he let Starscream truly get the better of him was the day he deactivated.

* * *

**AUTOBOT HQ**

"This news regarding the possibility of Decepticons is most disturbing, Magnus," Optimus said, monitoring Teletraan's screen.

"These abductions are beginning to become unsettling too, Prime," Magnus added, stood at his side, "You don't think-"

"Yes, I do. There's a correlation. Robots are abducted; then drugged civilian robots draw and attack our forces. Hot Rod discovered that the two prisoners we had, matched the description of two missing robots. Hot Rod," Optimus gave cue for the tenacious 'bot to speak. He was seated at a terminal.

"Yep. Both worked around the same area in Kalis. One worked at an ore-refining factory, the other at an Energon storage pit. Poor slaggers were just ordinary civilians," Hot Rod shook his head.

"Hmmm," Magnus brought a hand to his chin, "Abductions, possible re-programming, Autobot casualties- this has Decepticons written all over," Magnus uttered, processing through all of which they knew so far.

"Indeed it does," Optimus sighed, "It would certainly explain the welcomed absence of them recently. And it can only mean we have much more ahead of us."

* * *

**DECEPTICON HQ**

Having recently returned from their successful mission, Astrotrain and Dirge walked through the dark Decepticon headquarters. They had one destination in mind- the recreation room. Nothing beat some cold, hard, high-grade after a mission.

"Pulling civvies about just ain't as fun as messing with Autoscum," Dirge grumbled. "At least Autobots can fight back."

"Yeah, I think Megamouth should have us 'botnappin some Autobots instead. That would be much more interesting,"

"Heh, that's not a bad idea. I'd pay to see the Autobots have to take on one of their own. Just to see their faces…"

"I'd give one of my transformations to see it."

Approaching the recreation room, the two Decepticons froze outside its doors. They both listened carefully to a racket they could hear coming from within.

"Starscream," Astrotrain said plainly after a short while.

"What the frag is he babbling on about?"

"Lets see," Astrotrain pushed open the doors. They were almost blinded by the light that flooded out of the rec room- and speechless for what they saw.

"Megatron is about as much use as a rusted afterburner!" Starscream shouted from a-top a table, a can of high-grade in one hand, "It's a conspiracy I tell you! He's really working for the Autobots! You've all seen the way he laughs when we are damaged by them!"

"Actually, that's only you, Screamer," Blitzwing snickered among Starscream's audience, all of whom watched on with amusement.

"And why is he always sending that two-faced wreck on secret missions? He has Soundwave spy on us! They are in it together! I bet they sit over at Autobot HQ with Optimus-best-friend-Prime and laugh at us!" He shouted, waving his arms around wildly.

"You're fraggin' crazy, Screamer," Skywarp grumbled.

"He's always been a CPU short of a processor," Thrust added.

Starscream was oblivious to his comrades mocking as his intoxicated mind spewed fourth more nonsense.

Astrotrain and Dirge took a seat at a table with Blitzwing.

"Come on guys, who let him drink all that high-grade?" Astrotrain said loudly, "We'll never get him to clamp it."

"I'd clamp it for him if I wasn't too busy laughing at him," Blitzwing chuckled.

"I blame Skywarp and Thundercracker, they should have been keeping tabs on their fellow seeker," Ramjet said.

"HEY!" Skywarp shouted.

"Oh no, not the mini-bot conspiracy again," They heard someone saying at another table, as Starscream continued to babble in the background.

"Where is everyone? It looks emptier in here then usual," Dirge said, looking around.

"Heh, Mighty Megatron's got 'em all out on 'botnappin runs. He's getting quite a collection. He's really going all out with this." Blitzwing said, taking a big swig of high-grade.

"You know, I think he might actually have it this time," Dirge said, looking thoughtful.

"Yeah, we'll soon see," Astrotrain smirked.

Suddenly, everyone turned around when they heard a huge crash. Starscream had collapsed on the table and gone offline. Everyone turned to look at Thundercracker and Skywarp.

"What?!" They both said together.

* * *

**AUTOBOT HQ**

All was quiet at Autobot HQ, as it had been for some time now. Optimus was stood in the operations room, having a quiet conversation with Hot Rod. "So you see, Hot Rod, that's twelve reasons why you shouldn't bet with Prowl-"

Hot Rod jumped and Optimus spun around when an alarm sounded from Teletraan. Both ran over to investigate.

Optimus scrutinized the map that had popped up on the monitor, with two red blotches flashing on it. Teletraan spoke, "Unknown enemies causing damage in Uraya and Iacon. Coordinates 174…"

Ultra Magnus came speeding in, having been alerted. "Prime?"

Optimus didn't take his optics off of the screen, the flashing turning him red, off and on. "Magnus, mobilise the strike team," He paused and turned to Hot Rod, "That means you too. Remember you're replacing Sunstreaker."

Hot Rod nodded, "Ready and willing."

Optimus turned back to the monitor, "Looks like the Wreckers are going to be busy too. Time to call them in…"

* * *

**A/N:** I've gotta say, I have so much fun writing the Decepticons, I think I'm gonna have to write them a fic of their own. I have quite a lot of action planned for the next chapter, (well, the Wreckers are gonna be in it, how can there _not _be action I guess). Hope to see you then, thanks for reading! 


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